HEARING IMPAIRMENT: KELLI HALL
HEARING IMPAIRMENTS by Kelli Hall Main Characteristics • Speech Delays o Children incapable of saying single words by 1 year old or two-word phrases by 2 years old • Communication Difficulties o Responding inappropriately to questions o Difficulty articulating their speec o May have a peculiar voice, intonation, pattern of speech, or difficulty with pronunciation • Selective Hearing • Behavioral Characteristics o Turn-up t.v.’s, radios, etc. to compensate for inability to properly hear o Echopraxia  Closely observing peers to emulate body language and behavior o May appear dizzy and/or disoriented o Irritability o Academic problems Causes of the Hearing Impairment • Conductive Hearing Loss Causes: o Malformation of outer ear, ear canal, or middle ear structures o Fluid in the middle ear from colds o Ear infection (otitis media - an infection of the middle ear in which an accumulation of fluid may interfere with the movement of the eardrum and ossicles o Allergies o Poor Eustachian tube function o Perforated eardrum o Benign tumors o Impacted earwax o Infection in the ear canal o Foreign body in the ear o Otosclerosis - a hereditary disorder in which a bony growth forms around a small bone in the middle ear, preventing it from vibrating when stimulated by sound • Sensorineural Hearing Loss Causes: o Exposure to loud noise o Head trauma o Virus or disease o Autoimmune inner ear disease o Hearing loss that runs in the family o Aging (presbycusis) o Malformation of the inner ear o Meniere’s Disease o Otosclerosis o Tumor Identification Process for Hearing Impairments • Office-Based Evaluation o Hearing impairment screening should be a part of every well-child visit o Physical Examination o Parental History • Tympanometry o Important test of the middle-ear function • Auditory Function Tests o Behavioral observation audiometry o Otoacoustic emissions testing o Auditory brainstem response o Visual reinforcement audiometry o Conditioned play audiometry o Conventional audiometry Accommodations and Modifications for the Hearing Impaired Student • Availability of a sign language interpreter • Captioning in the classroom • Extended time for assignemnts • Test administration in a different room • Interpreter or scribe for a test • Extra time for a standardized assessment • Shortened assignments • Regular educational settings are appropriate and adaptable to meet the unique needs of particular children who are deaf, however for others, a center or special school may be the LRE in which the child's unique needs can be met. Assistive Technology Resources • Hearing Loop (or Induction Loop) Systems o Use electromagnetic energy to emit sound • FM Systems o Use radio signals to transmit amplified sounds • Infrared Systems o Use infrared light to emit sound • Personal Amplifiers o Increase sound and decrease background noise http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/pages/assistive-devices.aspx Resources Buttross, S., Gearhart, J., & Peck, J. (1995). Early identification and management of hearing impairment. American Family Physician, 51(6), 1437. Cawthon, S. W., & Leppo, R. (2013). Accommodations quality for students who are deaf or hard of hearing. American Annals of the Deaf, 158(4), 438-52. Picard, M. (2004). Children with permanent hearing loss and associated disabilities: Revisiting current epidemiological data and causes of deafness. The Volta Review, 104(4), 221-236. http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/hq9806.html http://www.education.com/reference/article/hearing-impairments/ http://www.hearingloss.org/content/types-causes-and-treatment http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/pages/assistive-devices.aspx